From the mind of multi-instrumentalist and composer
Andrew Marshall of Yorkshire comes a 3rd LP from his idyllic
Willowglass progressive rock project,
The Dream Harbour. As a fan of his second release
Book Of Hours back in 2008, the prospect of sitting through this new recording and giving it a proper whirlthrough wasn't to my detriment in any way, shape nor form: hell, it may actually be a cut or two better than that second album I liked so much!
So what do we have here exactly? To put it one way, Andrew's music plays out like a lush Baroque fantasy painting, complete with the vintage keys, flute, plenty of guitar and a host of other instrumentations. People have likened his particular compositional approach to Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips of
Genesis fame, but in reality what we have here is something more akin to the Canterbury Scene being extrapolated by, say, someone like Keith Emerson of
ELP. And what I mean by that is that despite a decidedly pastoral, whimstical feel throughout, songs like the 20-minute 'A House Of Cards Pt.1' possess that quality of ever-shifting extravagance and indulgence that made songs like 'Tarkus' or 'Karn Evil 9' so iconic within the burgeoning era of "art" rock back in the day.
That being said, whatever your tolerance for purely instrumental fare, much of the music here is the specter of Beauty incarnate. The title track in particular is quite the marvel, transposing his finger picked guitar under some of the best "old school" synthesizer work I've heard in recent memory. And when that flute comes in...well, your ears perk up whether you like it or not.
Although I'd like to see sir Marshall change things up stylistically on future records, I would definitely say
The Dream Harbour is his best set to date, so listen below and judge for yourselves!
8.5/10